Chocolate
by Burning-through-the-Skies
Summary: Set after the CS. Eventual Thommy. And i'm just really bad at summaries It's called chocolate because I like chocolate. No special reason.
1. Chapter 1

Thomas has humbled during his years at Downton. Nobody can pinpoint the exact moment he showed complete kindness. No-one knew why he changed exactly, except Thomas. He knew why he changed. For baby Sybil. He felt he needed to be kind, for this child. He felt an overwhelming need to protect Baby Sybil. Much like Carson had for Mary (and still does).

You would not see people hating Thomas' change in attitude, they merely questioned it. They were, to put it simply, confused. Though they admittedly liked the new Thomas. He helped people when need be, he offered up compliments and smiled often. He put an end to his scheming, and readily apologized to Daisy for how he once had treated her. He made friends with Bates, and they shared daily morning chats.

One person, however, he had yet to make amends with. Ms. O'Brien. Thomas told himself every morning that today he'd do it. He'd apologize to Sarah. He'd get his friend back.  
But he always backed out last minute. Scared of rejection, of being laughed at, being put aside. Thomas promised himself, that he would make contact with her at the least. That never worked.

Thomas put more effort into his work than ever before. He did nearly everything Carson did. He was under-butler after all. He also did what he was asked, in hopes of getting on Carson's good side. Especially since Carson didn't appreciate Thomas fully (for reasons that I'm sure you are aware of). Thomas was finally accepted at Downton.

Downton was Thomas' home. Nothing would change that. Not even his previous hatred of nearly all that resided there. He could not leave Downton, and he would not. As his dalliance in the black market had proved. No, Thomas would never leave Downton. Not even if the person who simultaneously broke his heart and nearly had him fired was there too. Not even if he still loved this person to the point where it physically hurt. No. Thomas loved Downton. And he wouldn't leave. Especially now that he had a reason to stay. Baby Sybil.  
But that is not important right now.  
What is important, is that even though Thomas has become kinder (even to the new housemaid Jimmy seems to have taken a liking to), the staff of Downton know not to cross him. For they know what he has done and is capable of doing.

Well, nearly everyone knew. The new housemaid did not know. The Downton staff had a policy of not re-visiting past incidents (Most likely because of Ethel's fall from grace or Mr. Carson denying them the chance to even think of such things). Yes, the new housemaid had not been informed of Thomas' former ways.. But then neither had Jimmy or Alfred. They both hadn't a clue of Thomas and O'Brien having previously been as thick as thieves. New comers would just suspect something sparked a mutual disliking between them. Little did they know it was Alfred's arrival and Thomas' refusal to teach him the ropes. But that's all in the past now. Done and dusted. And though the feud is over, tension still remains between Thomas and O'Brien. However, Thomas wishes the tension away, so that he may freely approach O'Brien without receiving a reproachful look and without feeling the need to turn and run. Some day he'll work up the courage. Some day. Not today, not tomorrow and certainly not the day after, but some day.  
It did take Thomas a year and an unnecessary beating to ask forgiveness from Jimmy. But then again, Jimmy came to him first. Maybe if O'Brien took the first step. But that would not show much initiative on Thomas' part. He doesn't want that. He doesn't want to give O'Brien the satisfaction of being the bigger person. No. He cannot allow that to happen.

O'Brien was Thomas' only friend in his early years at Downton. Multiple days of smoking in the courtyard would turn into friendly chats. Thomas would not only go outside for a smoke and to get away from some of the staff, but to have a friendly chat with O'Brien. This would turn into a heated discussion on their shared disapproval of much of the staff. They plotted and schemed there. But now Thomas smoked mainly in the servants' hall, as to avoid confrontation. Occasionally he would sneak outside for a quick smoke, but only at night. Jimmy would join him sometimes, but not often, to keep Thomas company. It wasn't the same. Jimmy didn't smoke. It just was not the same. Albeit, he did enjoy Jimmy's presence.  
Jimmy couldn't understand Thomas' need to smoke outside, or smoke at all.

Thomas did not understand Jimmy's infatuation with the new housemaid. He silently protested from the side, but did not let Jimmy know. As mentioned before, he was a kinder person, even to the new housemaid. His reasons for being kind to the new housemaid (whose name is Ella, if you were wondering) were few. One being for Jimmy. The other being for baby Sybil (still not important).  
Thomas was most definitely drawn to Jimmy. Jimmy was not drawn to Thomas. Thomas decided that he would be likely to never find love. Not since all possible romances crumbled over and left Thomas slightly emotional after. "Slightly" is an understatement. A major understatement.

Thomas is drawn to Jimmy. He would openly admit it if necessary. Jimmy knows Thomas is attracted to him. He uses this to his benefit. Thomas knows that Jimmy uses his fixation against him. He's okay with it. To Thomas, it only means that Jimmy is pushing all the right buttons. He likes the attention he receives from Jimmy when he is in need of a favour. Which is more often than you would care to think. Jimmy would not thrive without Thomas. Jimmy is aware of this. But will not admit to it.

Not much has happened at Downton in the last year, apart from Thomas' attitude change. And Jimmy's recent and very apparent need to avoid Thomas when he can. This hurts Thomas more than he'd care to admit. Daisy has become particularly aware of this. Everyone else brushes it off. But not Daisy. She cares, and she sees that Thomas is distressed by Jimmy's actions.

So Daisy addresses Thomas on the matter. She waits until everyone else has gone up to bed, and Thomas is headed out for a smoke. "Mr. Barrow, may I speak with you?" she asks. Thomas, having already turned around at the mention of his name, nods. Daisy sits herself on the chair nearest to her, and signals Thomas to sit on the chair in front of her. Thomas is hesitant in moving, but slowly sits down before Daisy. "What's this all about then?" he mutters, taking his cigarette packet from his pocket, along with a lighter. Daisy takes a moment to think about how to say what needs to be said. Thomas, growing impatient, takes a drag from his now lit cigarette.  
"Mr. Barrow, I- I'm not quite sure how to say this. Uh, I 'spose I'll start with; Are you okay?"  
Thomas almost laughs, and lets the smoke pour out of his mouth, "Of course I'm 'okay', Daisy. What a silly question." He replies.  
Daisy frowns and waves the smoke out of her face. "I am asking this 'silly question', because no-one else will. I know how upset you are. I can see it. Jimmy is being cruel, Thomas, avoiding you so suddenly."  
Thomas stops her before she can go on. He stands from the chair and extinguishes his cigarette. "That's Mr. Barrow to you, and I would rather not discuss the topic of Jimmy. I am not upset, nor do I intend on being so. Good night, Daisy", and with that Thomas charges out of the servants' hall and up to the attics, leaving Daisy with an exasperated look on her face.

No matter, she'll try again tomorrow, or perhaps have Anna help her.


	2. Chapter 2

Tomorrow comes, and Daisy prepares herself to ask Thomas yet again. She is determined to get to the bottom of this. Daisy knows right well that Thomas is upset. She also knows he is too proud to admit it.

A nice little idea pops into Daisy's head. She acts on it right away. Daisy makes her way along the corridors, looking for Mrs. Hughes. Daisy is well aware that if Thomas will talk to anyone, it'd be Mrs. Hughes. If this didn't work, then she would see if Anna might be able to assist her on her quest to help Thomas.

Daisy still cares for Thomas. Her affection blossomed once again, when Thomas was being genuinely nice to her. This time, the affection is not of a romantic nature. Daisy sees Thomas as an older brother, who helps her when she needs it, and guides her, and just looks out for her. So of course, she felt obliged to help Thomas when he so obviously needed it. Daisy was prepared to do anything to cheer Thomas up. Even if it meant involving others, and addressing the source of the problem, better known as Jimmy.

Daisy treks her way through the downstairs. She remembers that when Mrs. Hughes is not out with the others, she is in her sitting room. Daisy makes her way there and hesitantly knocks on the door. She pauses a moment and pushes the door open. Mrs. Hughes looks over at her.

"Is everything quite alright, Daisy?" she enquires, worry now lining her face.

"I was wondering if I could have a word with you.. about Mr. Barrow..", Daisy answers. She's not quite sure what to expect from Mrs. Hughes. Perhaps she will think Daisy is once again, infatuated with Thomas.

"Daisy… Come in", Mrs. Hughes stands and walks over to Daisy, who is still standing at the door. She places a friendly hand on Daisy's back and pushes her into the room gently, closing the door behind them. "Daisy, I was positive this was all behind us now."

"Oh, no, Mrs. Hughes! It's not that. No. I don't like Mr. Barrow like that anymore. I'm just worried about him, is all." Daisy is specking fast and frantically. She did not want Mrs. Hughes to mistake her good intentions.

"Ah. Yes. Thomas has been acting rather strange as of late, hasn't he? So has James, if I may say so myself", Mrs. Hughes pondered for a second, before encouraging Daisy to share her worries.

* * *

Whilst Daisy and Mrs. Hughes were chatting, Thomas was in his room. It was his day off, and he was unsure of how to spend it. Usually, he would have stayed in the servants' hall and read the paper. On some occasions, when their days off coincided, Thomas would spend it with Jimmy. But their day off had not overlapped, and even if they had, Jimmy would have wholeheartedly avoided Thomas.

Which left Thomas in a state of confusion. He knew Jimmy was avoiding him. He knew that confrontation would do no good. He suspected he had done something to deserve this. But surely Jimmy would not still be preoccupied with the incident that happened _two years_ ago.

Thomas decided to ignore the matter and perhaps pop into the village. He's rarely outside of Downton. Some away time would do him good. Of course, he would need to run his plans by Mr. Carson first.

Thomas, now feeling better than before, hopped off his bed and quickly dressed himself. He was in a particularly good mood over the idea of spending is well-earned wages. He even allowed himself to glide down the stairs. Of course, this caused him to bump in to Carson. Which was quite lucky.

Thomas steps back from Carson and grins at him. "Mr. Carson, just the person I was looking for. I was wondering; since it is my day off, would I be able to pop into the village?"

Mr. Carson looked slightly taken aback, but still, he considers the matter. "It seems you won't be needed for a while yet. I don't see why not."

Thomas smiles at Mr. Carson. "Thank you, Mr. Carson" he replies as he bounds out of Downton and sets out towards the village.

Thomas' mood is rapidly improving. He's glad of it, since he had been on quite the decline recently. Maybe some time off was all her ever needed. Who'd have known it'd be so simple?

Thomas strolled gracefully into the village. Today was better than most.

As Thomas sauntered around the village, he thought of what to buy. Maybe a new coat for his late-night smoke. Perhaps some cigarettes would come in handy too.

Thomas having purchased his coat, and in the local shop, felt rather famished. As an extra treat, he bought a bar or two (or more) of chocolate. Yes, he bought more than two bars of chocolate. _Stock up while you have the chance._

He bought his chocolate and cigarettes and headed off.

Thomas, being in good humour, took his time walking home. He would stay outside of Downton for as long as he could manage. And for as long as he thought _they_ could manage without him there.

Arriving back, he was oblivious to the fact that someone was waiting for him. That someone being Mrs. Hughes. He was also very unaware as to why she was waiting for him.

"Mr. Barrow, may I have a word", she asks, but it's more of an order. Thomas nods, feeling a resemblance to last night's conversation with Daisy.

Of course, he was right. Mrs. Hughes led Thomas into her sitting room. And in the sitting room, was Daisy, and Jimmy.

Thomas regretted following Mrs. Hughes into the room, but it was much too late to make excuses. Mrs. Hughes gestured towards an empty seat, and Thomas did as asked. He sat on it and tried to make himself comfortable.

Which proved impossible, with Daisy and Mrs. Hughes keeping a rather close eye on him. Then there was Jimmy, who was, as suspected, avoiding eye-contact. He hadn't even acknowledged Thomas' entrance.

Thomas laughs nervously, and shifts in the seat. "I feel like a school boy ready to be scolded by the head master.."

"Thomas, it has been brought to my attention that you haven't been in the best of sorts lately", Mrs. Hughes speaks slowly and clearly, attempting to keep Thomas in the room. "I have also noticed some rather strange behaviour on James' part. You two have become rather close friends in the last year, I do believe. What's happened?"  
Thomas, not wanting to stay for the on coming interrogation, stood from his chair.

"Mrs. Hughes, I've already had a conversation similar to this with Daisy. Just last night actually." he began, "And everything is fine. Nothing has happened. So if you don't mind, I'll be spending the rest of my day off, elsewhere."  
Thomas is glad he was able to say that, because nothing was fine.  
He makes his way out of the sitting room and up to the attics. Upon entering his room, he flops on his bed and just lays there.

* * *

Thomas hadn't realised, but he managed to sleep right up until dinner was to be served to the Crawleys.  
He contemplated going down for his own dinner, but decided against it. He wanted to avoid all of the frenzy that would be taking place.

Thomas was most certainly not anticipating a knock at his door. He rolled himself off the bed and over to the door. Opening it, he saw a familiar figure.  
"Mr. Barrow, you're awake! I were up earlier, but you were sleeping so I thought it best not to wake you", the kind voice spoke. Thomas willingly stepped aside and allowed her in.

"Anna, I was not expecting you." Thomas replies with a warm smile. He watches silently as Anna places the tray she was holding on a small table.  
"Mr. Barrow, I've come up for two reasons. One is, your dinner.."  
"And the other?"  
Anna paces the room, giving herself time to think. When she stops, she looks at Thomas. "We all know Mr. Barrow. We all kn ow that you are still keen on Jimmy. Maybe even more so, despite all he's done to you.."  
Thomas sighs and sits on his bed. "It's not something I can turn on and off whenever I please, Anna."  
"I understand Mr. Barrow", she says honestly. Thomas can see concern in her eyes and he feels pitied. He doesn't want pity. "Mr. Barrow. Jimmy is treating you unfairly, and we can see what it's doing to you. I know you're sad, Daisy saw it too." Anna crosses the room and sits beside Thomas.

"You can't hide behind this wall you've built. You have to let others help you." Thomas feels a hand rest on his shoulder. As Anna stood, she patted Thomas reassuringly. "One more thing, Mr. Barrow, Jimmy isn't all that happy either. He may just be missing a certain someone." Anna smiles kindly at Thomas and leaves the room.  
Thomas was staring at the door for a lengthy amount of time. Then an idea came to him.  
He would have to find out sometime, so why not now.  
He bolted up from his mattress and grabbed a small enough piece of paper and a pen. He was writing a note. The plan included him sneaking into Jimmy's room, with said note, and one of his bars of chocolate.  
Chocolate always helps.

Now that Thomas had completed this task, all he had to do was wait for a reply. A reply to the note that read; Have I done something wrong?  
That was if he would even be graced with an answer, and Jimmy had not burned the note.

* * *

**A/N; Thank you for the reviews guys. You have no idea how happy I was after I got them.**

**To give you an idea, just imagine a short girl giggling and flailing her arms about.**

**Because that's what it was.**

**Daisy is awesome, I love her. So she has a big role in this story now.**


	3. Chapter 3

Jimmy had spent the better part of his night contemplating a reply. Has Thomas done something wrong? Jimmy was unsure of why Thomas would think such a thing. How could Thomas even consider it.

Jimmy was the one that had done wrong. He had brushed off his feelings. He denied the possibility. Now he had to face the truth. His affections had got the better of him. Jimmy avoided Thomas for no _good _reason, for no valid reason. Thomas was driven to believe it was his fault. When it most definitely was not.

Jimmy also spent a fair amount of time admiring the chocolate that was left for him. Even more so, he consumed the bar with delicacy. He would not destroy such a precious thing so quickly.  
Then, more thought went into the fact that Thomas had gave him chocolate. Jimmy was more than happy. His night was spent eating this chocolate, and thinking of a reply. All he could really write was no. But that was not enough.

Jimmy would need to explain a lot to Thomas. But it would not all fit in a simple note. A note was not enough, and no was not enough. Jimmy wasn't sure of what would ever be enough.  
He had feelings for Thomas, he denied them, but they were still there. He was certainly fond of Thomas. It scared him. So he hid them and hid from Thomas too.  
Jimmy's actions were taking their toll, and he needed to fix it all.  
He eventually wrote his reply and had slipped it under Thomas' door.  
_No. I have._

Jimmy wasn't sure what to do after that. He had quickly decided sleeping would be best. Of course it would.

Thomas wasn't entirely sure what to think of the reply. It was better than nothing, yes. But what had Jimmy done wrong? Thomas was confused, and he couldn't deny his confusion. No matter how much he wished to.

He vowed to spend the day avoiding hassle and simply doing his work, like everyone else.  
Merely getting through the day would be satisfying for Thomas. With Mrs. Hughes, Daisy and Anna keeping an eye on him, it would be difficult. He managed, nonetheless. It was difficult, but he managed.

After the dinner service, Anna came to talk with Thomas again. "Mr. Barrow", she spoke, and signalled Thomas to speak with her in private.  
Thomas obliged, and followed her out. "Yes, Anna?"  
"Have you... addressed the problem at hand?" Anna asked. She was curious and eager to know how Thomas went about it. If anything, she wanted the two to be together. Though, she wouldn't let that slip.  
"Yes, I have. I have been graced with an answer, a confusing answer", he replied.  
Anna sighed, rolled her eyes and looked at Thomas "You are hopeless Mr. Barrow."

Thomas stood for a moment, realising the truth in Anna's statement. He probably stood for longer than a moment, considering that Anna took this as a chance to head off home.  
He was still thinking about it all when he went out for a smoke (in his new coat and all). This didn't go unnoticed.  
"Is that a new coat, Mr. Barrow." said a voice in the dark, "Well, it must be, since I've not seen it on you before. I must say, it suits you well."  
Thomas brushed off the comment and lit his cigarette and took a well deserved drag out of it. "Jimmy", he uttered the name, and tried desperately to keep his voice calm. He really tried.  
"Mr. Barrow, I know I have some explaining to do, starting with the note. But first, thank you."

" 'Thank you'? What exactly are you thanking me for?"

"For the chocolate, of course."

* * *

**A/N; It's short as fudge but i can't be arsed to make it longer. Sorry**

**Thanks for the reviews on chapter 2, really! I appreciate _every single one._**

**I'll try my best to make the next chapter longer. 3**


	4. Chapter 4

"The chocolate? Ah yes, that bar of my precious chocolate that I gave you", Thomas sighed at the loss of his chocolate and grinned over at Jimmy. He took a deep breath of his cigarette and let it out slowly, holding the thing close to his mouth, ready to do it again.

"Yes, I do believe that's the one", Jimmy chuckled and shifted his footing. Nerves began to build up and he wasn't sure if he could tell Thomas or not. He'd bloody well try anyways, or perhaps he'd just run away and never come back. Though the latter was considerably more appealing, he thought against it. Clearing his throat he readied himself to tell Thomas what he needed to hear.

"Jimmy, why? Why've you been avoiding me so easily? I thought we had become friends, and quite frankly it's gone too far, because Daisy and them are getting involved. I need an explanation, Jimmy." Thomas hadn't even realised he'd said it until he was finished. Where had all that courage come from? Thomas wasn't even sure it was him saying it all. But it was him who had finally said something.

"Yes, I know you need an explanation Thomas. And you deserve one too. My actions aren't excusable and I apologise for it. I just... well, I needed time to think a few things over. Try and understand everything a little better before I said, or did anything foolish, and I know it was unfair on you, to just outright avoid you. I can assure you that it won't happen again", Jimmy took a deep breath and kept doing so, trying to find the right words to tell Thomas.

Thomas was confused, and a small bit worried about Jimmy, as he was breathing rapidly, and heavily, and for _all _the wrong reasons. Thomas was actually quite amused with how Jimmy looked when he was flustered. His cheeks were red, and puffed up each time he inhaled, and it was cute. His hair was falling out of place and cascading over his forehead, and his eyes. His eyes were closed and Jimmy was pacing up and down, still thinking of what to say, and how to say it.

"Jimmy, calm down. If I had known it would make you this flustered... well I would have still asked, you're quite the peculiar one aren't you? Not to mention, you are rather cute when yo—", Thomas stopped in his tracks and stepped back, hand on mouth. He hadn't meant for it to slip out, and he wasn't sure how Jimmy would react. Thomas wasn't one to make advances on Jimmy anymore. At least, knowingly make advances. "Sorry, I-I-, sorry." Thomas turned around and threw his stump of a cigarette to the ground, crushing it under his foot. He made his way back to the door before a hand caught his wrist. He swirled around and stared at Jimmy.

Jimmy looked up at Thomas and tightened his grip and spoke, "I haven't given my explanation yet, and I'm not letting you leave until I have." Thomas' looked at Jimmy incredulously, but allowed him to continue.

"Go on then"

"Right, well, I suppose it's best to start with saying that, I don't like Ella, well not in a romantic way. She's a nice girl, but really not my type", Jimmy was rushing, and out of breath yet again.

"And what _is_ your type, Mr. Kent?" Thomas shifted his eyes to look down at Jimmy. He was slightly amused, but also agitated since Jimmy's grip had only continued to tighten around his wrist. Jimmy cleared his throat and blinked up at Thomas.

"You, Thomas. You're my type. It took me a while, and some space to finally realise it and again, I'm sorry. Sorry for being so incredibly ignorant. But, I guess what I'm saying is... I like you, Thomas. Only you." Jimmy let his hand slide down from Thomas' wrist onto his hand. He grazed over the half glove and looked down to the ground. He was embarrassed, to say the least.

Thomas was in awe. He didn't think this would be the explanation. He thought it would be more along the lines of 'I don't like you anymore Mr. Barrow. I don't want to be your friend at all. Good bye.' He was so glad that it was almost the exact opposite of what he thought. Thomas hesitantly lifted his hand to Jimmy's face, and made Jimmy look at him. He let go of Jimmy's face and brought him into a bone crushing hug.

Glad was an understatement at this point. He whispered softly in Jimmy's ear, "Thank you." and pulled back. He pulled a stupid grin and walked into the Abbey, Jimmy in tow. Thomas pulled off his coat and held it over his arm as he walked towards the dining table, craving a smoke again. He reached down into his coat pockets and searched for the cigarettes and lighter. Thomas looked up when he heard a quiet applause.

"Both time you two made up", Daisy grinned and walked closer to Thomas and Jimmy.

"No, Daisy. They did more than make up. I think Jimmy finally confessed", Anna (who for some reason was not at home, with her husband) stepped into the light with a smirk on her face.

"You think so?"

"Oh, I know so. Just look at their faces."

Thomas looked at Jimmy. His cheeks were red and he was looking anywhere but them. Thomas grinned and looked over at Daisy and Anna. He let out a chuckle, and took his hand out of his coat. "You ought to be in bed, Daisy, and Anna, well don't you have a husband to be getting home to?" Thomas turned, having decided not to have another smoke after all, in case it prompted more conversation, "Off to bed, come on, Daisy, you too, Jimmy. Let's go. Good night, Anna." Thomas sent her a small wave while he was hooshing the other two up to their rooms.

What an eventful night it was for Thomas. He guessed he finally nabbed himself a man.

* * *

**A/N; Omg I finished it. **

**Seriously, four chapters are all you're gonna get out of me. Sorry.**

**I do have a one-shot type thing in the process, by the way.**

**And yet again, thank you for the reviews on the last chapter. Love you guys, even though we don't know each other. **

**Ha.. haha.. ha**

**Bye 3**


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